Read Online Ravenous by Sharon Ashwood - Free Book Online

called me two days ago as a courtesy. Every member of our local community is under their scrutiny."
    She shook the bracelet back into place and gave him her full attention. The weight of her gaze brought heat to the nape of his neck. "I told them at once you were above reproach."
    "They might not believe you."
    "There will be others who can corroborate your whereabouts."
    "I work alone, and I don't know when the murders took place. There may be no one who can swear to my innocence."
    "If you do not have suitable alibis for the dates and times in question, I will see to it they are found." She gave a conspiratorial smile.
    Alessandro nodded. "Your confidence is appreciated."
    "I need you. You do me no good in a police lockup."
    "We may need to work quickly. Tonight I gave the police reason to come knocking on my door." He summarized the night's events.
    Omara listened, a small line forming between her brows as the tale ended. "Show me the token you found."
    It was in the pocket of the coat he had left in the kitchen. He went and got it.
    Omara held the metal disk under the light of the lamp. "It is, as you say, very old." She made a small noise of interest as she turned it over. "Some of these tokens have the image of Eurydice on the reverse. This one does not. That means it dates, oh, from before the Black Death, at least. The metal-smiths included her only after that era."
    Alessandro curled his lip. "Is that when those ridiculous fantasies about the Chosen began?"
    She looked up and laughed, sudden merriment making her look almost like a living girl. "Ah, if you could only see the derision on your face. The myth of the Chosen sends you to sleep, does it? You do not care how Orpheus risked all to rescue Eurydice from death's embrace?"
    Alessandro gave a scornful wave of his fingers. "Fables for fledglings. I am not a romantic."
    "Are you sure about that?" Omara smiled, her lips holding a universe of promises. "Come now, the myth of the Chosen is the Grail Quest of our kind."
    "Enough. I know the story. True love holds our release from this vale of living death, just as Orpheus reclaimed his wife from Hades."
    "Oh, then how can you resist it? Are you such a sad cynic?"
    "I don't care how much a mortal might love a vampire; that vampire must feed."
    Omara lifted one perfect shoulder. "Then you miss the point entirely. The vampire Chosen by a living mate can feed on their love, sustained through the lust of the body instead of the lust for blood." Her eyes glinted from under her lashes. "No wonder the legend is so popular. I ask you, what's not to like about that? Except eternal monogamy, of course."
    Alessandro caught his breath, snagged despite himself by the promise of the myth. A Chosen could love without destroying. An impossible dream. "Orpheus failed. Eurydice never made it out of Hades."
    Omara leaned back against the cushions, clearly enjoying his bleak mood. "A beautiful story, and all you see are the flaws in the metaphor. Orpheus failed because he had insufficient faith. He did not trust the dark gods enough for the magic to work."
    "I empathize," Alessandro said dryly. "I have little patience with false hopes and bedtime stories, especially when there are other, more immediate problems to solve—like an unknown vampire leaving his leftovers for the police to find."
    "You are a work-obsessed bore." She blew him a kiss.
    "I'm a pragmatist."
    "And I would rather talk about anything but this killer and his tokens, but our cold, gray new world will not oblige." Standing, she circled the end of the coffee table and knelt before him. Alessandro started to rise, but she caught his hands, keeping him still.
    "I did not tell the human police that I know the source of these troubles," she said.
    "What is it?" Alessandro asked, surprised.
    She squeezed his fingers, reassuring. Once he relaxed, she rested her hands on his knees, the gesture both pleading and inviting. "I need your sword, my champion."
    "Of course." His voice